Page 123 of Country Contract

On the way to the King property to get Lilly, I had called Heath and told him I couldn’t consider him. To consider him, I would have to be a free agent, and I wasn’t one anymore. I had already given myself to someone. He was nice, only cursing himself for not meeting me sooner.

He told me I should still consider working with him, and I said I would consider consulting for his media portions in House Corp. I may have also begged him to work with Helen and continue the merger if he could find financial benefit in it. If not, then maybe he couldfake amazement at Helen’s professional achievements. He assured me that there would be no faking.

This achieves two things. One, the merger itself, which my dad wanted, and two, Helen’s security for Lydia. I couldn’t abandon everything. I know Heath is a kind person, and he seems to desire a romantic relationship. I think I might even know someone for him.

When we pull up to my family home, I can see some of the color drain from Harrison’s face. He’s dressed in nice black jeans, his dress boots—because those are a thing—a nice black button-down, a bolo tie with a beautiful emerald-green stone center, and his black Stetson.

I’m wearing a deep emerald T-shirt wrap dress. The fabric is soft, and if you look closely, you can see a vine pattern only a shade darker on it. I wear black heels with confidence knowing Harrison is still taller than me. My hair is in a fishtail braid with a few thin, curled strands framing my face.

We hold hands as we wait for Maria to open the door. When she does, she smiles broadly and grabs him by the ears before kissing him on the cheek.

“Welcome!” she booms, throwing her hands into the air. Looking him up and down, she nods twice. “Yes,” she says to herself before opening the door to let us in.

We enter the sitting room, hand in hand, to find all of my family sitting with drinks in hand.

“Miss Harlow and Mr. Hill,” Maria announces before asking what drinks we would like and dismissing herself.

“Hey, everyone.” I smile the most genuine smile I’ve ever given them.

“Hello.” Harrison bows, he actually fucking bows, and Helen breaks out into loud, obnoxious laughter.

I look over at my parents whose eyebrows are movingfrom their hairline back to above their eyes.

“Welcome to our home,” my mother states elegantly.

I bring Harrison over to a love seat, and Maria promptly brings us our drinks.

“Thank you for having me, it’s beautiful.” Harrison is nervous, and I adore him that way.

“Thank you. It’s a great deal different from Harlow’s place.” My mother doesn’t mean it as a dig, it’s the truth.

“Oh, yeah. Way different. Both are beautiful but I can tell already that our home will look a lot like her place now. I told her to keep everything. I enjoy her taste.” He squeezes my hand, and I melt a little inside.

“You do?” my father asks.

“Very much, sir. Harlow brings a light to the space that it doesn’t need to provide itself.” I am fucking melting at this man’s words. I see all of my sister’s faces soften, and Hayleigh looks over to her husband who is on his phone.

“She is lovely,” my father states, and I see an adoration in his eyes that has been lost for decades.

“Yes, sir.”

“Well, I believe dinner is ready. Let’s talk more over our meal,” my father announces, standing and offering my mother his arm. As each partner does the same, it’s not with dread I wait for our turn to join them . . . it’s with excitement.

One Year Later

“It is with great pride that I am able to reopen these doors. They have been shut too long. I hope what I can offer you all is more than just a store, but a cozy place toescape. When I first came to Pebble Creek, it was to do just that. Escape the reality that was my real life. Pebble Creek has offered me so much. Before an escape, and now a beautiful reality. A community that has become family. And love that I have experienced like no other. When I was younger, I would read to try and achieve all those things, and that’s where my passion for literature started. I hope that my place in this community gives everyone the chance to learn something new . . . laugh at something funny . . . and explore new worlds.” I wet my lips and smile broadly.

“Welcome to PC Books!” I cut the black satin ribbon attached to the door frame, and everyone in the area cheers. I chose to open during Saturday market so everyone could be here. There’s a decent crowd, so I’m glad I did it this way.

We had a soft opening last week with Harrison’s family, but this is the real deal. Cassidy and Mrs. Hill are proud and excited as I take on this new chapter.

I’m so thankful for their help while I put this place together. I didn’t even realize that running a store like this would be a dream of mine, but sometimes life pushes us in a direction that we didn’t realize we wanted to go in.

When I open the door, a small group of people walk in.

The space is just as I described: cozy. It has faux concrete walls and dark wood shelves along the south and west walls. A group of bookshelves in the southwest side creates a small aisle but is angled to open to the main space. There are two couches and one table with four chairs. Mid-century modern in style and warm tones. The ground is poured and sealed concrete with an array of mismatched rugs tossed about. The east wall has a small, isolated shelf and table that is dedicated to indie authors who have been kind enough to share their works with me.

My checkout counter is tall and right by the front of the store—simple wood with a white and gray marble top. A small stack of my own book of poems sits there.

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